The pair are in town to support the Varkey Foundation Global Teacher Prize, a US$1 million award presented annually to an exceptional teacher who has made an outstanding contribution to their profession. Nancie Atwell, a teacher from Maine, USA, was awarded the inaugural prize in 2015.

Set up to shine a light on the important role teachers play in society, the Varkey Foundation, unearths thousands of stories of heroes that have transformed young people’s lives. The celebrity-backed ceremony then helps bring to life the exceptional work of millions of teachers all over the world. Ultimately, by hoping to raise teacher respect across the world, it aims to play a part in helping recruit and retain the best candidates for the profession.

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The Global Teacher Prize is awarded by the Varkey Foundation under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister, and Emir of Dubai. Among the judging panel his year are Hollywood A-Lister Kevin Spacey, Nick Booth, CEO, The Royal Foundation of The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and Prince Harry.

Ten finalists - narrowed down from a shortlist of 50 and longlist of 8,000 from almost 150 countries - have already been chosen and will attend the Global Education and Skills Forum (GESF) on Sunday March 13, with the winner set to be announced live. That will be followed by an exclusive, invite-only gala awards event at Atlantis The Palm.

McConaughey and Hayek will also be joined by Bollywood actors Abhishek Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Parineeti Chopra and Ali Zafar, Korean-American singer Eric Nam and Moroccan singer Hatim Ammor. The event will see the stars walk the red carpet before enjoying a gala dinner and live entertainment with performances by Zafar, Nam and Ammor.